Historia Ecclesie Abbendonensis
| Historia Ecclesie Abbendonensis | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | History of the Church of Abingdon Chronicon Monasterii de Abingdon Abingdon Chronicle |
| Author(s) | unknown |
| Compiled by | unknown |
| Language | Medieval Latin |
| Date | c. 1164 |
| Provenance | Abingdon Abbey |
| Genre | Chronicle-cartulary |
| Subject | Abingdon Abbey |
| Setting | Anglo-Norman England |
| Period covered | c. 700–1154 |
The Historia Ecclesie Abbendonensis or History of the Church of Abingdon (sometimes known by its older printed title of Chronicon Monasterii de Abingdon or occasionally as the Abingdon Chronicle) was a medieval chronicle written at Abingdon Abbey in England in the 12th century.
The Historia is one of a number of monastic histories written during the middle and later parts of the 12th century, when a number of monasteries produced works devoted to recording the histories of their monasteries and local areas. In the south, these included the Liber Eliensis of Ely Abbey, the Chronicon Abbatiae Rameseiensis of Ramsey Abbey, the Chronicon Angliae Petriburgense of Peterborough Abbey, a history of the see of Bath and Wells, and the Chronicon Monasterii de Bello of Battle Abbey. The northern histories produced foundation stories of the various Cistercian houses, along with other works. The southern works, including the Chronicon, are mainly concerned with the various controversies that their religious houses were involved in. The northern histories are less concerned with controversy, and overall are more prone to hagiography.
The History of the Church of Abingdon was written by an anonymous author, probably a monk of the Abbey. The History covers approximately 400 years, from the time of King Ine of Wessex (to whom the first charter in the History is dated in 699) the end of the reign of King Stephen in 1154.
Little is known of the authorship of the document, other than that he was a monk of the Abbey and that he had entered by 1117. According to Sir Frank Stenton, this timing is suggested by the presence of certain passages that are apparently contemporary with Abbot Faritius, who died that year, is referred to several times in the first person by the author: “Moreover, we were without an Abbot for four years” and, again concerning Faritius, “we saw him buy more than sixty silk cloths”. Hudson, however, infers that the text may have been revised in the 1160s.
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